The overall objective of this research is to develop effective, widely applicable educational interventions which will increase the ability of young people to make informed decisions about their behavior in situations that tempt them to smoke or to engage in other activities potentially injurious to their health. Fundamental to the design of effective interventions is a more sophisticated understanding of psychosocial and situational variables that influence smoking and non-smoking behavior among youth. A related objective therefore is the development of a theoretical model of smoking uptake which fits empirical data on the functions that smoking may serve for young people confronting common developmental tasks. First year findings indicate that the act of smoking for children is basically an instrumental means of dealing with non-smoking issues that confront the adolescent on a daily basis. Moreover, cigarettes as objects have an astounding range of uses. Significant differences in factors afecting smoking decisions were found by sex and grade level. These factors will be studied more formally during the second six months of the 01 project year. The second project year will be devoted to the development of interactive educational interventions based on real-life choices about smoking commonly encountered by 6th and 8th graders. In the third year these materials will be field-tested and formally evaluated.